Whispers of a Dying World

A little breeze, it blows quite softly,

It carries specks of sand.

Through the ruins of the fallen,

Across a lifeless land.

…

Empty landing pads stand barren,

Toxic is the air.

If one came down to walk this world,

They'd only find despair.

…

What caused its people to collapse,

What made sea levels rise?

What made its creatures go extinct,

What added toxins to its skies?

…

What added rings of stellar junk,

Circling this dying world?

What drove the massive exodus,

As calamity unfurled?

…

The answer, it is in the stars,

As the creatures, they spread out.

Conquering and colonizing,

With no moments of doubt.

…

Among the stars, among the worlds,

The cycle begins again.

Soon more worlds will become barren,

Soon there'll be more toxic rain.

…

So thus Earth is the first to die,

But shall not be the last.

For humankind, for all its might,

Can't learn from the past.

Update (24/08/14): Replaced the second "empty" with vacant - no idea how that slipped past me.

Update (10/10/14): Replaced "vacant" with "barren," replaced the first "barren" with "lifeless."